


I like you a latte

by ENsane7



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Barista Keith (Voltron), Barista Lance (Voltron), Coffee Shops, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Feel-good, Fluff, Happy Ending, Hunk & Keith (Voltron) Friendship, M/M, More Fluff, Soft Keith/Lance (Voltron)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-16
Updated: 2020-08-11
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:33:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 16,723
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24746875
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ENsane7/pseuds/ENsane7
Summary: I've never really seen barista Keith only barista Lance and I don't know, it just sounded soft. There isn't much of a plot to this just really cute Keith working at a coffee shop and crushing on Lance. If you want fluff you have found it.
Relationships: Keith/Lance (Voltron)
Comments: 13
Kudos: 51





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, this is my first work. I really only started writing because there are a lot of fics here and I was tired of not finding what I wanted to read, so I wrote it myself. If I can make others happy with this than that's all that matters. Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments I would love to hear some opinions so I can improve my writing! Thank you for reading!

There was something about coffee shops that always put Keith at ease. That said, it was most likely the last place he had ever seen himself working at. He wasn’t much for speaking and most people who knew him all agreed that customer service is the last place he should be working. Keith himself had also agreed with that sentiment for the longest time. That was until he got himself fired from his latest job as a mechanic, making it the third that month. Something about not being able to yell at ignorant customers, no matter how much they deserve it. When Keith didn’t know what to do after that is when he found himself working at the coffee shop his mother co-owned with her partner Kolivan, Mamora.  
Keith at the time had laughed, if he was fired for rude customer service as a mechanic what difference would it make serving a bunch of people fancy overpriced coffee. The Keith now wished he could eat those words. Something about the calming setting and chill lo-fi music made dealing with people easier. He practically turned into a different person when it came to coffee. The shop itself also helped with its warm colors and vibrant plants everywhere. The back wall was all bookcases, full of the books his mother had collected through donations and the likes. It had a vintage vibe that gave it almost a fantasy, Alice and wonder land type feeling and Keith couldn’t imagine his life without it now.  
When Keith had showed up for work the first day, he looked so out of place his mother had laughed at him. It wasn’t mean though and thinking back on it Keith would never fail to flush bright red as he could remember the feeling of his mother walking up to him and pulling his wild hair back into a messy ponytail. He doesn’t remember what face he was making but the reassuring look on his mother’s face was all he needed to not sprint out of the building that second.  
It was always moments like that that made Keith happiest. Growing up he was raised by a family friend, Shiro, who is now practically his brother as well as being his manager. Keith would always be grateful for that, but his mother was always away in Japan. That was where the business had taken off at first, so his mother had to go back and forth a lot. It made him happy now that he was given a chance to work in his mother’s store and that it was doing so well she was able to stay home now with a stable branch in the states. Because of Keith’s work now he was closer than ever with his mother. Sometimes though he still thought about just how life would be if he had been raised by his mother.  
Thinking back to how Keith had been in the beginning of work never failed to bring a faint smile to Keith’s lips. He was currently setting up the espresso machine with such a smile when he heard a chuckle beside him  
“What are you thinking about with such a funny face”  
The question wasn’t mean, but Keith still flushed and instantly frowned at his manager standing beside him. “Shut it Shiro”  
Shiro only smiled wider with a knowing look on his face. He was one of the one’s that supported Keith the most through this job. He showed him the ropes, taught him how to properly be a barista, how to make all of the syrups and teas, and when it came to it, even how to work the register and deal with the more hands on customer service.  
When Keith had started, he was sure they were going to lose business over how unsociable he was but as the weeks passed by Keith slowly got better and better. He would get nervous when talking to people at first but then he started to recognize people. He learned the names of his regulars; he memorized their drinks. Soon he found himself having fun looking at all the different people coming in. He would stand at the bar making their drinks thinking about who they were, who they were waiting for, he would make up fun stories about possible situations. People watching was fun for Keith, he didn’t have to talk, and there was nothing better than the feeling of watching someone’s face light up because of something you had made for them. There was no way to describe the pride he felt when someone would compliment the drink he had given them.  
When Keith had started, he could hardly drink his own creations, everything just tasted wrong. Maybe the milk wasn’t steamed well, or the syrups were too much. It took a lot of practice for Keith to reach where he was now. Now it was Keith’s job to create the drink menu. Everything in the store was homemade from the syrups to the teas Keith made himself from the dried ingredients he and his mother grew from their garden or bought at the local farmers market. That was one of the big lures to the shop and Keith had to learn how to do it all. When he started, he had gotten so frustrated, he was impatient by nature and the more Shiro repeated ‘patients yields focus’ only made everything more infuriating. Keith had really hated Shiro at the time. He says that but it was an experience Keith would never give up now and much to his annoyance he was starting to get the saying, although he would never tell Shiro that.  
Keith looked up from cleaning the machine to see Shiro staring at the chalkboard Keith had just finished designing earlier. “this is a really good menu; the drinks are perfect for the incoming spring.” Shiro’s face radiated pride as he looked over Keith’s menu. Of course the classics stayed the same like the mocha and caramel and vanilla but Keith had worked hard to make syrups for coffee’s that would draw people in. He was especially proud of the white rose mocha and the lavender honey latte. Working with the two flowers to balance them into syrups was hard to do to get just right. The flavors had to mix into the coffee and have that perfect sweet bitter ratio, then adding the flower’s delicate scents and tastes, let’s just say Keith never wants to see lavender or roses for a long time. The smell made him nauseous at the thought of them, he worked so hard. He couldn’t complain though and the feeling of having Shiro compliment him definitely made him happy. After a year of working at the store he was finally thinking of it as his place, his shop.  
Keith couldn’t help the smile that broke out on his face and he thanked Shiro who laughed again and ruffled his hair. “Okay, time to open the doors.” Shiro made for the door as Keith glanced over at the clock on the wall.  
7:00AM  
When Keith started working getting to the shop by six to start opening and prepping the store drove him insane. He was not a morning person when he had started, now it was just another reaction, another step of the day. Even when he was allowed to sleep in, he couldn’t anymore. His internal clock was so messed up the idea of sleeping in didn’t exist anymore.  
As Shiro opened the door Keith wiped down the counter one last time and tidied up the already neat display case. There were a few pastries his mother would make that were sold, but it wasn’t many, although he knew his mother was in the process of hiring a local culinary student to be a baker for the shop. There was actually a small Kitchen in the back that could be used, it was just more of a process than one would think to add a new product group to a store. For now, though, the store had enough to be comfortable and Keith was reminded of this as he made his way through the early morning rush. 7 to 9 was busier than people would think with many people rushing off to work, carrying a morning coffee. Keith hardly had any time to even think as he went through the motions of making the endless list of coffee orders Shiro would hand him. The store had a couple other part timers, but none lasted very long and it was always either Keith or Shiro at the barista station. No one had stayed long enough to be trained properly. Keith partly blamed himself for that, but in his defense, Shiro should have known that having Keith teach people was a bad idea in general. Still Shiro insisted that it had to be Keith to teach any new barista’s because he had far surpassed Shiro’s skill, which he knew was bullshit. Shiro was amazing at what he did, he just happened to be better at dealing with the cashier work. Keith had gotten better at it, but he would never boast that he was good at it. There was still the occasional rude customer that would complain about him, although they were mostly tourist that were not from the area. The town Keith lived in was near the beach and although not the most popular vacation spot, they still had quite a cult following. The town itself was actually quite small so most people were regulars or at least faces Keith recognized making it all the easier for him to deal with the people. Other than the tourist, the only other faces that would be new were the college students that took a while to discover it. Mamora was a safeguarding the older students tended to protect for themselves. From Keith’s understanding new students would usually stick with the campus coffee shops. Meanwhile Mamora resided closer to the beach, hidden away in a quieter side of town.  
Keith let out a shaky sigh as the rush slowly subsided, the store itself now only had a few early rising elders and a handful of students cramming before early morning classes left in it. The line that earlier reached the door had now subsided to zero. The feeling after a rush was a feeling Keith would never be able to get used to. It was like with each order he was being wound tighter and tighter and he wasn’t able to relax or breath until everyone was gone. It was weird to say none the least, but Keith didn’t exactly hate it. Keith used this time to prepare a coffee for himself and Shiro. One couldn’t work at a coffee shop and not live off of the stuff. For Shiro Keith decided on making him an iced honey lavender latte, as for his drink he was currently obsessed with the almond syrup he had made recently, mix that into a cold brew with some almond milk and you had the best drink. It was hands down his favorite and was known among the regulars as Keith’s drink. Shiro didn’t even bother to guess what he was drinking although he did try for his. “That better be the new honey lavender latte you have there for me.” A grin broke out on Keith’s face as he replied to the overly excited man in front of him. “What else would I have made?” Shiro let out a cheerful laugh and as Keith glanced around the store and caught more than a few of the straggling college students blush at the sound.  
Although the coffee was definitely good, and the prices to Keith’s knowledge somewhat reasonable compared to other shops, he strongly believed one of the stores biggest sellers was Shiro. People would memorize his schedule so they could have him specifically make their coffee, and people couldn’t help but be infected by his positive attitude. It was just who Shiro was, he was a leader, a role model by nature. Of course, that’s not saying Keith didn’t have his own little following, but it was much different, clearly only about the coffee Keith made. Some people Keith learned were very specific about their coffee and like to have it prepared an exact way. Keith got some pretty weird drink demands some even dictating the number of ice cubes placed in the cold brew. It was always interesting to see what some people could come up with. Keith’s personal favorite was the order he got dictating a large cold brew with one pump of mocha one pump of vanilla and three pumps of simple syrup topped off with exactly three ounces of almond milk and ten ice cubes. It was so ridiculous Keith couldn’t help but memorize the oddly specific drink. Who even figured out the exact number of ice cubes they wanted in a drink? How do you even arrive at that number? Just thinking about it baffled Keith.  
With the morning rush over, Keith cleaned up the barista station and collected the bucket of used mugs. Bringing them back he dropped them off to the young high schooler they hired part time during his school breaks and weekends to do the dishes and clean the place. Thanking the kid Keith quickly ran back to his station and prepared the boy a large mocha. Rushing back to the dishwash station he silently handed it to the boy who’s face lit up.  
“thanks kid. Keep up the hard work”  
The boy had a goofy smile on his face as he nodded his head enthusiastically “of course sir, thank you”  
Keith smiled lightly at the boy although blushed a little at the use of sir. He wasn’t all that much older than the kid, heck he was barely twenty-one. Walking back out to the front Keith just barely made it back to his station to hear Shiro taking an order.  
“One large white rose mocha and a surprise me coming up.”  
Keith got excited with the new order and since it was so quiet, he could really put some thought into it. The surprise me drink was something Keith came up with to test his new syrups on people other than his mother, Kolivan, and Shiro. It gave Keith a chance to see people’s reaction as it could only be ordered for here and it gave the customer a fun experience. All Keith had to do was leave a small warning under the sign saying there was the possibility the drink would not taste great. Keith had come up with some of his best sellers this way. He also learned he was equally good at discovering the worst flavors to mix together.  
Looking around his station Keith saw some of the oranges he had cut up earlier. A few days ago he had made an orange syrup but just hadn’t figured out what to do with it but looking with the idea of a surprise me drink always seemed to make Keith more creative. Going to work he grabbed a glass with ice and filled it with two shots of orange syrup and three of the vanilla then he pulled a double shot and put it on the side. Next he steamed some milk with some of the vanilla syrup mixed into it. Scooping the foam off of the milk he filled the cup with about an inch of the foam before pouring in cold milk and the espresso at the same time. This caused the foam at the bottom to rise to the top. Now Keith had an orange cream iced cappuccino in front of him. He garnished the top with a slice of orange and some orange zest before he put it to the side to finish the white rose mocha he was working on. Turning around Keith carried the two drinks over to the receiving counter.  
Keith walked over confidently, proud to describe what the drink was, when he caught sight for the first time who ordered the drink. Standing in front of him were two guys but Keith could only focus on the handsome tanned, blue eyed guy in front of him. All of a sudden, the cool confidence he had disappeared, and he was barely able to safely put the drinks down.  
“ummm I have a rose white, I mean w-white rose mocha and a surprise me.”  
Keith wanted to slap himself for how stupid he sounded, but it didn’t seem to affect the two guys as the bigger of the two gladly took the mocha with a ‘thanks man’. Then the blue-eyed man turned to Keith with a smile. “So, what is this lovely looking drink in front of me?”  
It took Keith a while to realize the man was talking to him and he could only blush in embarrassment as the guy’s grin grew bigger. “um, I guess you could call it orange cream flavored? I mixed orange and vanilla and made an iced cappuccino to give it a smoother less milky texture. But as the warning says, I don’t actually know how it taste, these are just how I try out my ideas and get outsider opinions.” Keith stuttered out the last part wildly, practically telling the guy not to expect much. Keith was sure the man would be apprehensive but instead the second Keith finished talking the man took a huge sip from the drink. “Oh man!”  
Keith had looked away, embarrassed and worried about the outcome and at first, thought that the reaction was negative, but the man right after started rambling “I’ve never tasted anything this good! You need to put this on the menu now! How did you do it? Is it true all of the syrups are made in house? Do you do it? Damn, this is sooo good. I’m definitely ordering it again. What are you going to name it?” Keith, already bad with human interaction was fluster beyond all heck at how to react to the onslaught of compliments. Luckily for Keith, the other guy also seemed to see this and stopped Mr. blue eye’s “Lance… you’re overwhelming the guy, slow down.” “Opps, sorry, it’s just so so so so good!”  
Keith shook his head a little to wake himself from the daze he was in before he rushed out a thank you. “I can definitely make this for you again if you come it, there’s no way I won’t remember you” As soon as the words were out of Keith’s mouth, he wished he could put them back. He quickly turned around and saw Shiro barely holding in a laugh. Keith wanted to scream. ‘smooth Keith, real smooth.’ Turning back to who Keith had now learned was Lance he saw an amused smile on the man’s face. That’s it, after today Keith can never show his face again. He didn’t think he would ever be able to live down the embarrassment. “what I mean is, I remember most of my customers, I mean that is if you want to come again, you may not even be from here, I mean.” Keith shut himself up before he could dig his grave any deeper. Lance’s smile practically reached his ears as he eagerly replied. “Of course I’m coming back! This place is awesome! I actually go to the college here. Although I have no idea how this place was able to stay out of my sight for the past two and a half years. The upper classmen weren’t kidding when they said they’ve been keeping this place a secret from the freshers. Oh, also if you hadn’t figure, I’m Lance and the guy next to me is Hunk. Figured we should introduce ourselves if we’re to be your new regulars.” At the end of the statement Lance winked and shot two finger guns at Keith which was cheesy beyond belief but made Keith happy. It took an edge off of how embarrassing he was acting himself.  
“Keith, I mean my name is Keith. I work here almost every day, so it will be hard to miss me, but I promise you Shiro makes drinks just as well as me.”  
“he’s lying” Shiro had snuck up behind Keith and placed his arm around Keith engaging himself into the conversation. “Yeah, no offence, I’m sure your good too but damn, Keith is a fucking genius with coffee, I’ve never tasted anything so good!” Hunk shook his head in agreement and the four of them kept talking until the next slew of customers started showing up letting the two workers know that the lunch rush was nearing.  
As Lance and Hunk went to go grab seats to finish their coffee, Keith watched as Lance grabbed a book from one of the shelves and sat himself down in one of the plush chairs practically burying himself in it. Keith couldn’t help but let a smile grow on his lips as he watched the two friends read with conversation interrupting here and there. It was a miracle Keith was able to get through the lunch rush without a problem because he spent the entire time distracted, which Shiro was eager to point out. Honestly rushes were always a blur for Keith. One minute it was ten and the next it was going on eleven thirty. The last time Keith had glanced at Lance and Hunk they had long finished their drinks and were just sitting there enjoying the mood of the place. Keith couldn’t blame them. Before he started working at a coffee shop, he would often do the same thing. Even now he still did, going to different coffee shops, but it lost some of its appeal because now all Keith can think about is how to improve his own drink menu and if he could find some new idea’s at different places. Plus, then he feels guilty for going somewhere else, as if he’s betraying the Mamora. It was such a weird feeling and overall kind of ruined the appeal of coffee shops for him. There was also the fact he had to pay for the coffee. Benefit number one of being a barista was free coffee all day, every day. Spending five dollars on a coffee somewhere else when he knew he could just make himself the same drink for free was a painful feeling.  
By the time the lunch rush was over, and Keith had no line again, he saw Lance and Hunk rising from their seats. Halfway through the lunch rush Keith had seen Lance pull out his laptop and return the book he had borrowed. Now Lance was putting away the laptop and multiple lose papers with colorful writing on them. Watching him, Keith couldn’t help but wonder what Lance was studying. He had said he attended the nearby college and since he said he didn’t know of the place for two and a half years he must be a junior. So lost in thought Keith was barely able to reply a quiet goodbye as Lance and Hunk left, Lance practically bouncing. Keith had a feeling that the boy didn’t need caffeine to be rambunctious.  
Keith’s eyes followed the two until he could no longer see them. Turning around blushing his eyes met with a knowing Shiro. “You totally have a crush dude, and it was SO obvious!” Shiro was practically laughing, but it was in that brother way that no matter how annoying, you couldn’t truly be mad at it. “I do not, I don’t know anything about him, I just think he’s… kinda pretty? Maybe?” Shiro acted started “Is this Keith I hear, admitting to liking something about another human?” Shiro then dramatically gasped drawing the attention of a few guest, as the store was now quite busy. Keith, at this, turned a deep shade of red as he started shushing Shiro. “Come on drop it” and Shiro did.  
For the rest of the day, the two worked quietly before closing again at seven PM. Between the two of them and the part timer they were able to finish closing rather fast and were out by seven thirty. Keith took a deep breath as he looked at the setting sun. He walked to work because his house was relatively close. Despite his house being rather isolated, surrounded by woods, it was close to the café. Mostly because it used to be the store house for supplies and where the pastries and syrups were made before the addition of the small kitchen to the café. Now it was just a normal house that Keith’s mother allowed him to move into.  
Keith enjoyed it, and there was enough space for Keith to keep his dog, Kosmo, there. Kosmo was well trained and the back door had a dog entrance, so he was able to leave Kosmo there while he worked. Keith still worried about his dog though and always tried to close as fast as possible so he could get home.  
The walk home was also one of Keith’s favorite parts of the day. Working at the café required more socialization than Keith was used too or preferred. The walk home allowed him a cool down, it was time to himself that he really needed after a long shift. There was also the fact that a nice walk after stiffly standing in the relatively same spot all day made one feel a lot better. After a few hours you start to get really sore standing and making drinks all day. It didn’t matter how comfy the shoes Keith was wearing were, his nice sneakers would always get worn down. He was on his third pair this year. That and they always got stained with coffee and syrups. Spills were unavoidable so there was always the debate of buying cheap shoes that are okay to destroy or good shoes that will be comfortable but get horribly stained. Keith had gone both ways and regretting it both the same. There was no win with coffee.  
There was also the fact that Keith always smelled like coffee now. Even on his walks home he couldn’t get the strong smell off of him. But Keith was okay with that. It’s not like coffee smelled bad, plus he was kind of proud of his work, he saw it as a badge of honor.  
Keith slowly made the short walk back home letting his mind wonder. Mostly though his mind kept returning to the boy that had ordered the surprise me drink. There was something about those blue eyes that he couldn’t forget. God, he hoped that boy would be true to his work and come back to the shop. Keith wasn’t the type to normally fall for someone on the first encounter and he didn’t even know anything about Lance, but he at least wanted to be friends. He seemed so bubbly and full of life. Currently, other than Shiro, Keith didn’t have many friends. He never was good at the whole making friends thing. In Keith’s mind he was fine without them, he had always preferred being alone. He was an outcast back at school and even now he had only recently found his place at the coffee shop. There was something almost scary about having too many people around him that wanted to know him and actually talk to him. That was the way Keith always though, but whenever Lance popped up in his mind, he could only think that maybe it would be okay to let some people in. Maybe introduce Kosmo to them, hang out, show them the house he was so proud of. He could teach Lance how to make syrups and coffee, he seemed like the type of person that would enjoy that. Lance seemed like the complete opposite of him, and who knows, maybe that was what Keith needed.  
Before Keith could think any further, he found himself mechanically opening his front door. The early spring sun had long disappeared by now. Blusing bright red he realized he had spent the entire thirty minute walk thinking about Lance. It didn’t even occur to him that Lance had come in with his friend, he had only thought about the one boy, with the bright blue friendly eyes.  
God Keith needed to change the subject, he didn’t even know if Lance would come back to the shop, he would be lucky to see him again, let alone have been memorable enough for Lance to even remember his name. Shaking his head, as if that would clear his mind, Keith walked into his house after taking off his coffee stained sneakers.  
“Kosmo”  
The next thing Keith knew was that there was a giant wolf sized dog on him.  
“Hey boy! Did you miss me?”  
Keith laughed as he pet the overenthusiastic dog jumping up around him. Walking into his kitchen he quickly fed Kosmo before grabbing himself some leftover soup he had made a few nights ago. That was the problem with living alone, it was hard to cook for one. He would sometimes give the food he made to his mother and Shiro but more often he would find himself eating the same food for multiple days.  
Keith ate quickly in the living room with the tv turned on to some random channel he wasn’t paying attention too. Absentmindedly he stroked Kosmo who was on the couch next to him. By the time Keith had finished it was around eight, which meant time to get ready for bed. Early in the morning Keith would have to tend to the not so small garden that was his back yard. That was the one of the reasons his mother was so eager to let him live at the old storehouse. It was where the main garden was for their supplies. In the back there were many herbs and flowers they grew, from the chamomile Keith turned into a tea to the thyme and basil he grew to turn into syrups for his lemonades he made fresh in the summer. He always got back too late to work on the garden but if he got up at five that would give him enough time to tend to the garden and be at the store early enough to open.  
It was funny how life worked. Keith who was so bad at customer service and preferred bikes and mechanics to most things, now found himself gardening and making coffee for a living. Keith laughed a little at the thought as he finished brushing his teeth and washing his face setting his alarm so he could be up and ready on time.


	2. chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More setting up and cute moments. Just Keith being Keith along with some really nice Hunk and Keith interactions because god knows I didn't get enough of those. Little of Lance but hey, I am a sucker for a slow burn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So if you have found this fic, I just want to warn you it is really just me rambling about cute soft Voltron characters. I don't really have an update schedule and I don't know how consistent I will be but any support on this is gladly appreciated! Feel free to leave comments telling me your opinions! This is a great way for me to practice my writing while also satisfying my need for Voltron fluff! Hope you all enjoy this and if anyone has any suggestions for where they see this going I will gladly listen to them!

It had been three days since Lance had visited the shop. Normally Keith wouldn’t remember the name of a customer who had visited only once but now as he stood there in his garden long before the sun even started to rise, all he could think about was the tall blue eyed man that had been so cheerful as he said he would visit again. The sigh Keith let out would convince someone he was going through the breakup of a lifetime, not obsessing over someone he had met once and didn’t even know.   
God he was pathetic. Keith needed to pick up speed or he wouldn’t have time to shower before going to work and nothing was worse than having to show up to work after sweating all morning with mud stuck to you. Plus, it was completely embarrassing, and it left Keith self-conscious the whole day. Could people tell he hadn’t had time to shower before going to work? The though alone was enough to motivate Keith into working faster. Everything was going well in the garden and he had enough thyme and basil to gather for the lemonade syrups. It wasn’t quite hot enough yet for the lemonades, but it was a good idea to start preparing for them by testing out different syrups now. The last time Keith did the basil syrup it wasn’t strong enough and the thyme was way too strong. This time he was determined to find the perfect ratio. There had to be a way to get both of them just right.   
The idea of a challenge motivated Keith even more and before he knew it he was dressed and ready and walking out the door after saying goodbye to Kosmo. He had filled his food bowl earlier and unlocked the dog door that would lead out to the backyard. Kosmo knew not to mess with the garden and there was plenty more space for the dog to play. Even so, it still pained Keith to leave the dog alone. He wished he could bring him to work, but the thought of Kosmo running around jumping up on customers made Keith more than eager to leave the dog at home.   
The term dog was generous, he was actually a wolf dog and appeared way more wolf like than dog. It was common for people to cross to the other side of the street when Keith walked him in town. Now he stuck mostly to the trails that lead through the woods. Along with the beach, the town was surrounded by thick woods that made it an ideal camping area. The summer was about to become extremely busy, which was all the more reason for Keith to get to work. If he got there early enough, he could work on some drink ideas.   
To save time Keith decided to take his bike to town. Grabbing his helmet, he quickly threw on his leather jacket and got on the bike before speeding off turning the would be thirty-minute walk into a five-minute motorcycle ride. Keith normally only rode his bike if he was running late, but on days he wanted to get some extra work in, he would take the bike to save time. Plus, it was nice to just sit for a bit and drink coffee before having to open. It was such a satisfied feeling to be completely ready for the day and have nothing to do but open the door. More often than not though he was rushing to prep stuff until the minute the doors opened.   
When Keith got to the café, he parked his bike in his spot and pulled out his key to let himself in. He was the only one opening that morning. Normally only one person was all it took to open, except for the weekends where it was extra busy, and more products were put out.   
Upon entering the building Keith quickly set off to work, setting up the barista station and wiping down all of the tables and counters. He then threw the pastries that were set the night before into the oven. Setting a timer, he quickly walked back to the fridge to pull out the new batch of cold brew that was ready for that morning. It had been steeping for 24 hours and smelled like heaven to Keith, but he couldn’t have his coffee yet. Doing a quick count, he checked how many quarts of each syrup he had left before deciding if he needed to make any more of anything. It was a Monday so most of the supplies were pretty depleted. Monday’s were also the least busy of all of their days so Shiro and a part timer would handle the drinks and front of house while Keith would restock all of the syrups. Counting, Keith realized it would most likely be a busy day since he would need to make a batch of caramel, mocha, chai syrup, black tea, simple syrup and vanilla syrup.  
Checking the clock Keith swore silently, it already read six thirty, meaning he only had thirty minutes until they opened. There was more left to do than he thought so he figured instead of experimenting it would be best to start on the long list of syrups he had to prepare. While the pastries were still in the oven, he quickly pulled out a giant pot and heated up twenty quarts of water. He would turn this all into simple syrup and then put vanilla extract into half of it to make the vanilla.   
Keith worked quickly and without thought as it was something he was so used to doing by now he could do it in his sleep. Plus, these were the easy ones to knock out first unlike the caramel, mocha, and chai which had to be made first. When the timer went off for the pastries, Keith quickly pulled them out and then laid them to the side to cool. There were quite a few scones, cookies and muffins today. Grabbing one of the scones Keith went to go get his morning coffee.   
Despite all he had done in the morning, Keith didn’t feel awake until he had that first sip of coffee. He prepared his usual, almond syrup with almond milk in cold brew and sat to the side. Both the pastries and simple syrup/vanilla syrup were done and checking the clock he saw he had a solid ten minutes until he needed to open the doors. Sitting at one of the tables Keith let out a giant yawn as the early morning caught up to him. Shiro should be arriving soon and hopefully the morning rush would be quiet enough for one person to deal with it. The part timer they had hired would come in an hour after opening at eight and then work until closing. That was when Keith would disappear to finish the rest of his work.   
As Keith sat there, he was so tired he couldn’t even think much. He was so used to mornings, but originally, he was never much of a morning person. He always made Shiro deal with customers first thing in the morning if he could, because he couldn’t trust himself not to snap at someone when he was sleep deprived.   
Five minutes later and Keith heard the door swing open. “Hey Shiro…” Keith started before looking at the door to see something he hadn’t expected. “Hey mom and… Hunk?”  
Keith sat there dazed as he looked towards Shiro standing with his mother and the same large guy that was with Lance three days earlier.   
“Hey man! You really did remember our names!”  
Keith flushed at the man’s words because he just gave away the fact that he had been thinking about them, well Lance, for the past three days. “Yeah, nice to see you.” It was an awkward reply and he looked desperately at his mother for an explanation. The look on her face was a warm smile as she knew well enough now how to read Keith’s face.   
“This is Hunk, as you know.” She started, “He is the culinary student I hired to make pastries for the shop! I know it’s Monday so you have to make all of the syrups and stuff today so I figured you would like the extra help to have him get used to the kitchen!”  
The look on Keith’s face must have been priceless because all three were staring at him in a funny way. Keith was quick to react and properly greet Hunk but, on the inside, he could only think one thing. If Hunk was working there and Lance was his friend, there was a 100% chance he would be visiting from now on. It also occurred to Keith the time they visited must have been to check out the place and see if Hunk really could see himself working there. Keith was thankful now that his awkward display that time wasn’t enough to scare the new baker away before he had even started. If it were Keith who had to deal with himself, he would have run the other way and find another job. Keith was determined this time though to get along with Hunk and it seemed easy enough. The man from what Keith could tell was nothing but sunshine and smiles.   
Keith quickly excused himself as his mother and Shiro gave Hunk the rundown of how things would be working from now on. He found himself at the espresso machine making Shiro the white rose mocha to try and for his mother her normal double shotted extra dry oat milk cappuccino. After those were done, he stood for a while thinking about what to make for Hunk. After a while Keith settled on making him a hot dirty chai latte.   
When the drinks were done, he carried them over the three who were still talking.  
“Thanks’ honey” his mother cooed while ruffling his hair. Keith blushed but didn’t push her hand away. He would never admit it, but he like when she did that. Shiro similarly pat him on the back, before silently taking his drink. With a serious face he stared at it before doing the routine guessing game.   
“hmm, well I had the honey lavender latte already, so this has to be the white rose mocha.”   
Keith rolled his eyes at the serious way Shiro said the words. “It’s not fair guessing when I have new specials, you know I need to make those for you to try so you can recommend them.” Shiro laughed at that losing the serious expression. Shiro was one of those people who was a morning person through and through and didn’t even need a drop of coffee to keep him up and awake. From the minute his eyes opened Shiro was wide awake and ready to start his day. If Keith said he wasn’t jealous of that he would be lying.  
Hunk was the last person to take his drink, but he was also the nicest about it, almost as if shocked Keith included him in the drink exchange. Keith might not be expressive, but this was the one way he could think of to welcome Hunk. He wanted to try his best to show him he was welcomed. Keith didn’t want to be the reason for someone to quit again. Just because maybe he wasn’t the best people person and he was kind of hard to get a long with.   
Keith watched as Hunk took a sip and was happy to see his eyes light up.   
“Wow! This is super good! Chai is one of my favorite drinks and this is hands down the best I’ve ever had! Do you make this yourself?”  
Keith blushed at the praise and awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck while replying to Hunk, unable to make eye contact.  
“Yeah, I did, and actually it’s one of the syrups we have to make today so I guess I’ll be showing you how to do it too. I already have it written down too if you want to take a picture of my notes.” Keith’s words started to go quiet at the end, his confidence dying by the end. He never knew how to handle praise. At least with Hunk there was something about it that made Keith positive it was genuine. There was no doubt about the honestly of his words that usually snuck into the back of Keith’s mind when he was complimented.   
Keith looked back at Hunk to see him practically glowing. “Man, I’m so excited! Today’s going to be super fun. I want to create food items that complement the drinks here so I can’t wait to learn about what we all have here from you!”  
Keith normally wasn’t the type to get excited, there was very little in his life for him to even feel excited about. But standing there with Hunk’s infectious positivity made the smallest of smiles start to break out on Keith’s face. He started to talk to Hunk, explaining to him all of the different syrups and teas they had, what could compliment the drinks, what kind of pastries would suit the café. Keith had never talked to someone other than Shiro with so much ease. Talking to Hunk was as natural as breathing air. Keith who couldn’t remember the last time he let alone talked to someone was now having a full-on conversation with someone. Granted the topic of conversation was coffee and tea which made Keith go into an almost instinctual ramble mode. He just couldn’t help himself when it came to his work. Whenever he thought or talked about it a bubbling feeling of pride would well up in his chest. He truly loved his work as a barista.   
It must have been a petty long conversation because when Keith looked at the front door his mother was waving goodbye and Shiro was already helping the first customer.   
“Shit”  
The line was starting to form already, and much to Keith’s despair he realized he would be helping with the morning rush. Torn between what to do Keith glanced at Hunk who also seemed to be taking in the situation. “Hey, would you mind waiting for a while, at least until the initial rush is over before we start the syrups and teas?” Keith knew he should be speaking with more confidence, because he had to help Shiro, he had no choice in the matter, but part of him felt bad just ditching Hunk to sit there and wait for the line to disappear. Keith was awkwardly rubbing at his neck again when Hunk gave a quiet chuckle.   
“It’s totally cool man, this actually will give me some time to come up with some ideas, maybe a basic theme to follow! I want to create a menu that suits the aesthetic of the place! Nothing in worse than a place that just doesn’t match up.” Hunk said the last part with a determined huff, he was taking this super seriously which made Keith relax faster. He was happy knowing that Hunk was going to treasure this place as much as he does. Keith gave him a lopsided smile, not used to the gesture and gave him a chaste nod as he walked quickly to the drink station.   
It took Keith and Shiro a solid hour to clear out the morning rush, but it was worth it as it left the place empty when they finished. With much luck, due to it being a Monday, it should remain relatively quiet for the whole day. The hour passing also signified the part time worker coming in. Keith looked up from his work just in time to see the short brown-haired girl bouncing into the shop. The girl, Pidge, was a senior in high school, but she was so far ahead in school that she was only required to go every now and then. Most of her work consisted on taking online college courses and the café was able to work around her schedule pretty well. Keith didn’t mind Pidge, they got along pretty well. Pidge was also on the quieter side from what Keith could tell so he was shocked when he saw the girl launch herself into Hunk’s open arms. Keith must have been blatantly staring at the two because Pidge just let out a mischievous laugh. “What? Who do you think recommended Hunk to be the baker? This guy has been my best friend forever!” Shiro must have already known because he let out a happy laugh as he pretended to scold Pidge, telling her to clock in.   
It didn’t take long for Pidge to settle in to work at the register while Shiro overtook the work at the barista bar. They had offered to teach Pidge, and Keith had shown her a few things, but she insisted she actually found it fun, of all things, to deal with difficult customers. Something about how she could get a good laugh out of it. Keith didn’t trust anyone who found dealing with such insufferable people entertaining. One difficult customer would send Keith into a spiral of self-doubt. All of a sudden it would be endless questions of whether he was doing his work properly or if he was actually any good at it. He had gotten in trouble so many times for being rude he no longer knew the line.   
Keith double checked with Shiro to make sure they had everything they needed before he disappeared with Hunk into the small kitchen in the back. The two started talking again, and Keith was shocked again just by how natural it felt. Talking to Hunk felt like talking to a supportive friend you have known for years. There was just something so genuine about the guy you couldn’t help but like him right away.   
Keith quickly gave Hunk the tour of the small kitchen, not that there was much. That said, Keith was quite picky about how the place was organized. Everything had to be just right, he couldn’t bring himself to work in a cluttered messy environment.   
“Okay, so I this is where all of the syrups are kept. I already made the simple syrup which is easy enough and I’ve finished the vanilla because all that is is adding extract the simple syrup.”  
Keith guided Hunk to the giant fridge in the back that held all of the extra supplies for the barista station. On the table in front of it were the batches of syrup Keith had already prepared. Pointing at them he explained to Hunk exactly what he did to make them. Then setting off to work, he showed Hunk how he kept count and how he organized everything.   
Keith then tasked Hunk with filling a giant pot with water to boil so he could get started on the tea. Luckily the only tea that needed to be made for the day was the black tea. With Hunk starting on that, Keith was able to get started preparing the ingredients for the caramel. It was always a good idea to start the caramel early because it would take about an hour for the sugar to boil to the right color. If it was taken off too early, it would be more of a butterscotch and caramel was also extremely easy to burn. As a culinary student Hunk already knew how to make caramel, but with a business, things depended on consistency, so Keith gave Hunk the instructions to how he makes it. Then he gathered the ingredients for the mocha sauce once he saw that Hunk already had the water boiling, and the tea steeping to the side.   
The two fell into a peaceful rhythm soon with Hunk asking a few questions and Keith answering them to the best of his ability. Soon the two were talking about things off topic. Hunk explained how he was going to culinary school but specialized in baking. He even made his own bread and offered to bring some in for Keith to try. Before he knew it, Keith found himself talking about how he ended up as a barista and his house and garden.   
“That’s so cool, you’ll have to show it too me! Man, Lance would love that, he grew up on a farm and is surprisingly good at that kind of stuff,” The mention of a certain blue eyed person shocked Keith more than it should have and he found himself with a bright red blush on his cheeks. Keith felt his entire face heat up, which was ridiculous because he knew that Hunk and Lance were friends, he even got out of Hunk that they were roommates so the mention of his name should be in no way a surprise. But there Keith stood over a pot of half mixed mocha syrup a bright shade of red.   
It took Keith all of five seconds to excuse himself from the kitchen under the excuse that he had to check on Shiro. Shiro of course was fine. Pidge, who claimed to only be working to afford parts for her inventions was extremely good at customer service. Plus with the tech wiz on the register there was no such thing as technical difficulties. Pidge had even taken it upon herself one day to improve what she called a faulty system. Keith knew his mother paid for the newest most up to date tech, but Pidge was right. After she had finished her updates, the old program looked like it had been invented by a child, twenty years ago.   
Keith took one glance and could tell everything was running smoothly, but he still asked anyway. Maybe Shiro needed him to bring up more syrups, or maybe they were running low on something else. But no. Shiro just gave an odd look and shook his head.   
Everything said and done, Keith had long cooled down and was focused again. ‘Focus yields patience’ that darn saying. Keith walked up to Hunk to see the guy was finishing up the caramel, being extra careful to not burn himself while adding in the heavy cream. It was fun watching him. He was good at what he does. Keith walked up to him when he finished and silently the two started to quart up the syrups and teas they had made for the week. When they were done, Keith found that they were way ahead of his usual schedule. The extra help was working wonders and Keith was glad that he wouldn’t have to do this on his own anymore.   
This gave Keith and Hunk time to discuss the new pastry and drinks they could work together on.   
“So I’m going to be doing a whole bunch of lemonades for the summer, it’s super simple and easy to train someone other than the main barista who will be doing all of the coffee’s. I was thinking strawberry, lavender and basil to start and then also doing a list of different Arnold Palmer flavors. For example, I have a berry hibiscus tea and a mint tea I grow myself that mix really well with the lemonades.”  
Hunk was shaking his head excitedly as Keith was talking. “I could totally do pastries to match each flavor, like macaroons! I could do a hibiscus and a mint and earl grey! Each tea can have a corresponding macaroon! We could even extend that to the coffee’s and do mocha, espresso, honey lavender, rose, salted caramel!”   
Hunk kept rambling on the different flavors and Keith couldn’t help but grow a smile. Something about macaroons seemed so right. They would be perfect to sell, and they would be special to their shop. The two kept throwing idea’s back and forth. Hunk suggested some cakes they could do, nothing heavy, all light and simple that would pair well with tea or coffee. The idea was to keep things light and simple having customers leave satisfied and light, not feeling heavy. Overall the pastries would be decided based on what was to drink, and the macaroons would be a constant.   
Keith quickly glanced at his watch to find that an hour had easily passed and the two needed to quickly clean up the kitchen so they could help Shiro and Pidge close. Keith was in a much more talkative mood compared to when the day started, and he couldn’t help his excited chatter over the pastries. Keith wasn’t one to talk much, unless it was about something he truly cared about and god did he care for the café. With four people clean-up was much faster than usual and Keith found himself walking out to his bike with sunlight still shining. He said goodbye to Shiro who would be staying to handle some orders and instead walked out with Pidge and Hunk. Hunk would give Pidge a ride back to her place. The three walked out together and as Keith went to head to his bike, he saw a sight he didn’t expect. Standing in front of his bike was Lance who was admiring the beauty in front of him. Keith took good care of his bike. It was one of his pride and joys. Plus, he built her mostly himself, as she was in horrible condition when he got her and almost every part needed to be replaced.   
Keith would have normally been every bit as awkward as physically possible, but with the bike there he could at least muster up courage to talk.   
“She’s nice, isn’t she?”  
“This beauty is yours? It’s so amazing! Where did you get her? When did you learn to ride? Do you think you could take me for a ride sometime?” It had been a while since Keith had last seen Lance which made Keith complete unprepared to undertake the receiving end of Lance’s ramble. His words just never seemed to stop, but part of Keith didn’t mind, Lance had a nice voice.  
“Yeah, she’s mine. I’ve been riding since sixteen. I got her a few years ago, but she’s only been rideable for a year. It took a while to piece her back together, when I got her, she was a mess. As for the ride…”  
“Oh! Maybe that was a bit much to ask!”  
Keith blushed, he didn’t want lance to think he didn’t like him or found him annoying. “NO!” Okay so that came off way to aggressively and Lance stopped talking to look up at Keith shocked. “What I mean” Keith tried to explain “is that I don’t mind if you want to go for a ride sometime.”  
A goofy grin broke out on Lance’s face and Keith could feel one on his own face. “Oh, okay!” Lance replied almost shyly, which seemed out of place on the usually loud boy. Keith caught a glance at a grinning Pidge and Hunk. They were the kind of smiles that screamed no good. Keith had to get out of there fast. He was awkward enough on his own, he didn’t need two more people helping him to make a fool of himself.   
“Hey, so I should get going, I have to get home to my dog.”  
“Oh okay” Lance seemed to actually be disappointed at that which made a section of Keith’s heart leap. Before Keith could regret it, he kept talking. “You know, you are always free to visit, and the coffee is definitely covered by a friend discount. You know practically everyone working here so don’t be a stranger. Plus, it’s nice to have friendly faces supporting the shop.”  
‘Nice Keith’ he mentally scolded himself, ‘you basically told him he has to buy coffee from you and it’s rude if he doesn’t.’ If Lance felt that way though he didn’t show it and instead gave Keith a toothy grin. I’ll hold you to that offer, especially since I usually am the one to drive these two to work anyway. I’ll stop in for coffee next time and of course to try Hunk’s pastries!”  
“Sounds good”  
Keith gave one last wave before he forced himself on his bike. The whole way home he wore a goofy grin and he knew it. Lance would be visiting more often.


	3. Chapter 3

When Keith asked Lance to visit more often he expected it to be maybe once or twice a week. Instead he got much more than what he bargained for. Everyday Lance would stop by since Keith extended the invitation. It was as if he was just waiting for permission before he became a new café regular. Lance would walk in without fail at 3:30 after his latest class got out at three. He would walk in, order his coffee, which changed every day, and sit in the exact same spot. It was now common knowledge that the big fluffy chair near the bookshelves was Lance’s chair.   
On top of being the new regular customer, Lance had also claimed the title of unofficial taste tester. Keith has now watched as countless times Hunk would walk out with a small testing plate of desserts and watch as he silently and nervously handed them to Lance. Keith would watch as Lance would silently take the treat and try it, but that was as far as the silence reached. After trying the pastry Lance would shoot into a rapid fire review of what he just tried. Keith found it endearing to watch and found it one of his new favorite things to watch to pass time in the shop. Of course, he doesn’t mean that in a creepy way! Okay? It was just cute to watch.   
If there was one thing Keith learned about Lance while watching the testing it was that Lance above all was honest to a fault and would tell it to you straight. There was one time Hunk came out with a pastry that was far from one of his best. Keith doesn’t even remember what it was anymore. All he remembers is watching Lance take one bite, scrunching up his nose in what Keith could only describe as the cutest gesture possible, and then telling Hunk flat out that it was not good. That said, Keith also learned that Lance was caring and helpful at the same time as right after Lance gave his honest opinion, he countered it with what was the problem, how it could be better, he complimented what deserved it, such as how the appearance was good. Overall Keith was learning just how good a person Lance was and that only made him want to get closer to the man.   
Of course when Keith talked to Lance he wanted to smack himself each time, and although each encounter was getting slightly less awkward, each word Keith said still made him want to take it all back and hide. It made it worse when Lance would counter with the cutest smile and a laugh so honest and pure Keith couldn’t help the cheesy grin that would grow on his face in reply.   
The only solid thing Keith could find himself talking about was Hunk. Despite Keith’s usually slow nature when it came to making friends, he got attached to Hunk unusually fast. He was hard working and honest and there was something about him that was so damn friendly. Hunk had come in everyday and created multiple pastries. He had already created a line of macaroons to match every drink. Every dessert Hunk created was amazing. The macaroons were the new constant but Hunk was also busy creating weekly and seasonal pastries for the store. In the short time he had been working at Mamora he had already created a folder of every pastry sold in store with details on how to make it, customer reviews, how it sold, what it paired well with and so on. It was so detailed and when Hunk shared it with Keith he almost couldn’t believe it. He was amazed to say the least and definitely gained a new level of respect for the man at that moment.   
It was actually Hunk that Lance and Keith were currently talking about. Lance had just come into the store and ordered Keith’s drink. He was already mindlessly rambling away while Keith listened to it with a slight smile to his lips. Luckily the store was pretty empty except for the few college students that were studying for their classes. Thanks to Shiro the bookshelves held many of the textbooks for the local college so that any student could come in and borrow it if needed just as long as it never left the store. People seemed to be pretty respectful of the rule too and it brought in a whole new level of clientele.   
“Hunk actually just came up with an almond scone that’s supposed to go with this drink.”  
I didn’t take long for Keith to finish the drink as it was really just a simple almond flavored cold brew with almond milk. In a matter of seconds he was giving the drink to lance who was tiredly leaning against the counter. Keith didn’t know what Lance was studying but it must have been pretty difficult and draining. Every time he would enter the store his normally bubbly demeanor was on the more subdued side and he just seemed like he needed a break overall. That all ended the minute coffee was in hand though.  
Lance gave a quick smile and brightened right up at the sight of his drink.   
“Oh man, now I have to ask Hunk to let me try those with this! There’s definitely more benefits to being his test subject than disadvantages!”  
Lance was now lightly laughing and just the sight of that made Keith start to smile. There was something infective about being around Lance. He was always this bright and bubbly person and he always seemed to know how to start a conversation, even if the person on the other end of the conversation was the socially awkward Keith.   
“Definitely can’t deny that, I think I’ve actually gained weight since he started working here. One minute I’ll be making a drink and the next there is a new treat in my mouth.”  
This comment made Lance laugh harder and for once in his life Keith wished the store would remain this quiet so he could continue his conversation.  
“I’m serious!”  
Keith emphasized waving his hands  
“I don’t know how you live with him and remain so thin! I don’t think I’ve tasted one fail of his yet!”  
“I wonder why!” Lance said with an exasperated sigh “There’s no way he would let you taste something he has no idea whether it’s good or not. You, my friend, are like the final judge! I on the other hand have no punches pulled! It’s been like this since I met the guy my first year of school! Just thinking of some of the dishes he created makes me cringe.”  
Just to emphasize it Lance shook like he was getting a chill and stuck out his tongue.   
“It couldn’t have been that bad” Keith was teasing Lance at this point, and it was something Keith had a feeling he would be doing a lot of. Watching Lance who was so expressive compared to him was something he couldn’t get enough of.   
The two continued their mindless ramble and eventually Keith got so distracted it took Shiro tapping him on his back telling him there was an order to be made. Keith could feel the heat travel to his cheeks as he quickly nodding at Lance before getting back to work.   
Keith could hear the sound of Lance chuckling at him as he walked to his usual seat and grabbed a book from the wall.   
Keith was just finishing up the drink he was making when he heard Shiro talking right into his ear.  
“real smooth there”  
Keith was lucky he didn’t spill the drink he was holding. He gently handed it to the waiting customer before turning to a grinning Shiro.  
“really? What if I had dropped that, one of us could have been burned and I would have had to waste more effort to make another one.” Keith was scolding Shiro, but anyone could tell that there was no real harsh feelings behind the words. Plus, Keith really couldn’t say anything, he was thinking the same thing about how he was talking to Lance. The only interactions they’ve had since meeting was at the café. That’s all they really were right now, just a barista and their customer.   
Keith signed before just lightly pushing Shiro “Lay off”   
“Touchy. Anyway, I wanted to ask you if you could go to the farmers market with Hunk. He’s been working around our drinks and stuff it would be nice if you could work around his. Maybe go and find a new summer tea or something that he can create a pastry around. The market will be set up tomorrow morning. Since it’s a Sunday and we close early that day and it’s never really busy, I’m going to hold down the fort with Pidge so go have some fun tomorrow.”  
Keith was not expecting to hear that of all things but he also was excited about it. The farmer’s market was one of his favorite places. He had this favorite tea vender. They called themselves Altea. The teas they sell are some of the best Keith has ever tried and they are what the store always sells if it wasn’t grown from Keith’s garden. Keith had yet to check what they had in new for the summer so going with Hunk to create a cohesive combo from it was going to be a lot of fun.   
Keith was so excited he couldn’t even give Shiro a snappy reply only a quick sure, before he turned back to the espresso machine and Shiro turned back to the register.   
For the rest of the day there was a slow but steady volume of customers. Sometime during a rush, Lance must have slipped out because when Keith glanced up from working, the chair he always claimed was empty.   
Seeing that actually had Keith signing which had Shiro snickering at him. All over again Keith felt himself flushing red from embarrassment.   
After the store was closed, it didn’t take long to clean up and feeling guilty for taking the day off tomorrow Keith made sure to do a thorough job of it. He also did a check on what they would all need from the market, noting that he should probably get some strawberries and raspberries for lemonade syrups. They were going to start them on Tuesday, after Keith had all of the syrups prepped and ready to go. Hunk was already working on things to pair with the lemonades but he wouldn’t tell Keith.   
Keith was hoping to use tomorrow to figure out just what the man was thinking. They would also need to buy lemons, but they would just purchase them there and have them actually sent to the store because they needed so many. Lemonades were one of their most popular summer items. There’s something that makes it taste better when you watch a person physically making the drink right in front of you. This year Keith actually wanted to set up a stall at the farmer’s market where they would sell the lemonades and some of Hunk’s pastries. He would have to talk to his mother about that. 

When Keith returned home that evening it was actually still light outside. The closer summer got the longer the days got. That said, Keith kind of missed the darker nights. There was something almost enjoyable about taking Kosmo for his walk in the dark underneath the clear sky with the starts and moon lighting the path. Just looking up at the sky would calm Keith down right away. It was soothing, and there was nothing Keith enjoyed more than walking Kosmo.   
It took almost no time at all for Keith to get inside and wrangle Kosmo onto a leash and before they knew it, they were halfway through their wooded walk. The heat of the day was starting to die down and Keith actually had to throw on the light jacket he had brought.   
With any other dog a walk would consist of a pretty short distance, but after having to leave Kosmo alone for most of the day the walk would without fail always turn into at least five miles. It was by no means short, but Keith found himself flying through it distracted most of the time. He was solely focused on tomorrow and how it would be to hang out with Hunk at the farmer’s market. Keith could honestly not remember the last time he had gone to just hang out with a friend. Even when it came to Shiro they almost always saw each other at work or at home, never really out much.  
Maybe that was on Keith though, he never liked crowded places, so it made sense to avoid them. He was excited though. Even introverts need to go out every now and then. Maybe he would bring Kosmo too. He always felt safer with the dog around, plus he worked as natural crowd repellent because most people were scared of the poor dog. Keith also had a bag that he could strap to Kosmo to help carry any of the many ingredients they would be buying.   
The walk ended surprisingly fast but it was still dark by the time the two returned home. Releasing Kosmo from his leash Keith headed to the kitchen where he quickly threw some leftovers into the microwave. The rest of the night was a blur as Keith kept reviewing exactly what they would need to get at the market. He kept scouring the internet for different idea on drinks and patries to match and the like. They needed everything to be cohesive and Keith was beyond excited. He had so many ideas running around his mind he couldn’t even register feeling tired until he felt the tug of Kosmo on his sleeve pulling him to bed. He had to get at least a little sleep before tomorrow.

The next morning Keith regretted staying up so late. He was beyond tired, but he had to make sure to get to the market early. It didn’t take Keith long to get ready to go, the hard part was getting Kosmo ready. Not that it was because the dog was difficult but because he was so excitable trying to get the carrying bag and leash on him was a struggle. He had dragged Keith around the house a few times before it was properly on.   
By the time the two were ready to go they only had fifteen minutes to get there. Personally, Keith would have been happier being early, but he could except being just on time for once.   
Keith pulled into a parking spot and found Hunk almost immediately. He was someone surprisingly easy to spot in public. He was starting to walk right up to Hunk when he saw that the big man had been blocking another person. There Keith had to stop walking midway and try to calm down his mind before it ran away from him and he was left unable to even think.  
Lance was standing next to Hunk literally glowing under the bright morning sunlight. He looked beyond happy and was animatedly talking to Hunk like it was noon instead of seven in the morning.   
‘come on Keith, it’s just Lance. Just the guy you kind of think is really pretty and might have a slight crush on. Nothing scary there.’  
Okay so Keith was struggling, it felt like his legs were moving through jelly. Each foot felt like it had a brick strapped to it. Keith was normally bad with crowds, now add his possible crush and that’s just asking for disaster. Honestly Keith was close to booking it, the only reason he didn’t was because at that exact moment Hunk decided to spot him.  
“Hey man! What are you doing? Get over here”  
Lance’s gaze also landed on Keith and the smile that broke out on his face practically made Keith melt. Keith felt himself slowly walking over to the two, but it felt odd, like he wasn’t the one moving his body. Which seemed to bee true because he had forgotten that Kosmo was there and practically dragging him. Keith probably would have even let go of the leash by accident if Lance hadn’t spotted the dog and practically tackled him with no regards to his own safety.   
“Hey, I’m not saying that my dog is dangerous, but maybe don’t rocket launch yourself at strange dogs.” Keith struggled to keep a straight face as he watched Lance shower Kosmo with affection.   
“Oh my god! I promise I would never do with a stranger’s dog! But he’s your dog so I knew I would be safe! Anyway, is this the dog you mentioned? He’s so precious! What’s his name!”  
Lance started down his rapid-fire questioning which actually helped to put Keith at ease. It was such a Lance thing and the familiar action made Keith feel a little less nervous. Hunk had also made his way up to the dog and was petting him too.   
Keith couldn’t help but look on with pride as he watched Kosmo act like the perfect angel he was and let the two strangers pet him.   
“His name is Kosmo”   
“Oh, who’s a good boy” Lance was cooing at the dog like he was a baby and at this point Keith found himself full on smiling. He also had to get the ball rolling.   
“So, I was thinking we could go to the tea stall first and work our way from there. I’m friends with the two and then we can move on to produce. I want to let Hunk pick out a tea so he can have more freedom matching the pastries.”  
Both Lance and Hunk stood up when Keith started to talk, now more focused on him and not poor Kosmo who seemed to already miss the attention. “sounds like a plan!” Lance bubbled and with that the four were on their way.   
Just as Keith had expected it was nice to have Kosmo along because he kept people from crowding too close around them. This cleared a fast walking path through the stalls. At least, that would be the case if Lance didn’t stop at almost every stall to sample or buy something. His latest find was homemade jam which all three had sampled and were amazed by. Actually, Lance wasn’t the only one who had bought one, they all had.   
“Not that I’m not happy you’re here Lance, but why are you here?”  
Keith really hope that didn’t come out as rude, but it had been bothering him for a while now. This was mostly a work outing, although the group was having fun. Keith waited for Lance to start talking but it was Hunk that got to it first.   
“I actually invited him. You see Lance’s family runs a farm. Do you know the organic milk farm you guys just switched over too? That’s run by Lance’s family. It’s because of that that I discovered the café and was able to apply. They have a lot of connections with the different farms around here so I invited him hoping he could give better input about what would be good vendors to by from. They also have a stall here that they sell dairy products at. I thought he could give us input about what we could do to get a stall up and running.”  
Keith was shocked speechless and Lance at this point was blushing.   
“I had no idea that the milk supplier we used was you guys! Wow I feel stupid now!”  
“No that’s okay! It’s not like I told you! You already give me my drinks for free because of Hunk, I didn’t want you feeling like you owed me anymore! Plus being a farm boy totally ruins my cool image!”  
At the end of that statement Lance shot two finger guns at Keith who couldn’t help but laugh. He was quick learning Lance was really good at lightening up a mood and ending would be awkward situations. “Fine, but we’re stopping by your families stall before we leave!”   
“Not my family!”  
The horrified look on Lance’s face and the equally dramatic gasp had both Hunk and Keith laughing at him as they made their way through the crowd in search for the Altea tea brand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so I wanted to write this earlier but ironically my own work as a barista kept me so busy I was unable to. That said I stopped working to get ready to back to school and this is my de-stressing hobby, so hopefully I can write more to this story! Let me know what you guys think feel free to leave a comment! Thank you so much for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time for a cute farmer's market outing!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I disappeared for a while with this but I'm back, sort of! I'll put a longer explanation at the end! For now just enjoy the pure fluff I have written for this chapter!

The Altea Tea stall was something that looked like it came straight out of a fairy tale. Everything was placed in cute little glass jars with samples of all the tea to smell. Live plants were hanging all around the window of the stall. Everything was meticulously placed, and it had the appearance of something dearly loved, you could see the hard work and dedication the owners put in to the stall. 

The girl running the stall could have been straight out of a fairy tale, with her white hair and dark skin she was absolutely stunning. When she turned to look at Keith who at this point was quickly approaching, he could see the light reflecting off her big blue eyes. He had known Allura for years and still needed to remind himself to breath around her. Heck he wasn’t even straight, and she mesmerized him. 

The smile she gave the approaching group was nothing short of radiant and if Keith who was used to such a look could barely handle it he couldn’t even begin to imagine how Lance and Hunk were doing. Keith risked a quick look at the boys to see a wide-eyed Hunk and practically drooling Lance.  
That stung a little, and Keith could feel a pang hit his heart. 

‘No, focus, Lance is just a friend’

Keith had to shake his head a little to clear it before he could put his full attention back on Allura.  
“Hey Allura, how are you?”

“Keith! I’m doing really well! It’s so good to see you! Who are these two lovely gentlemen with you today?”

Keith watched Allura give the two boys beside him a happy wave as she introduced herself to them.  
Keith started his introduction with Hunk. “This is Hunk, our new baker. We actually are here to look at your teas so we can find some inspiration for a drink dessert combo. He’s really amazing!” Keith tuned to Lance next “and this is-“

“The names Lance, but you can call me anytime!”

Lance winked and then shot two finger guns at Allura. Keith watched as it went down and somehow managed to keep a straight face on. He wanted to say that watching Lance flirt with Allura didn’t hurt but then he would be lying. It’s not like they were a thing, heck, they were barely friends. Lance was his customer, but there was just something about him that Keith felt unnaturally attached too. Watching the flirting was a reminder of just how truly one-sided everything was. 

After introductions had finished it ended up being Hunk getting the group back on track. He was looking at all of the different tea options with wide eyes. He looked like a child in a candy store and just the sight of it raised Keith’s spirits. He sent a grateful smile at Hunk who only looked back with slight confusion before happily continuing his search for tea he could use. 

Now back on track Keith was also once again focused and questioning Allura about some of the new teas they had released. Lance was being surprisingly quiet too knowing that his two friends were seriously working. Keith appreciated that Lance knew when to take situations seriously and keep quiet. Keith was definitely learning that if there was one thing Lance was really good at it was reading a room and responding to said room appropriately. Some people may have found him to be loud and obnoxious at first, but once you got to know Lance, he was far from that and turned out to be one of the most thoughtful and self-aware people he knew. 

Keith, realizing he had gotten distracted, turned his attention back on to Allura who was holding up a sample of tea for Keith and Hunk to smell. As his focus settled, he couldn’t help but fan his face a little praying no one realized how red his face had gotten thinking about a certain blue-eyed boy.

“This is one of our newest teas, it’s a white tea so it’s nice and light and definitely good for the summer. It’s also contains violet which we grow ourselves and we added dried pomegranate seeds to it. The taste is sweet with a floral hint while also being light due to it being a white tea. It would bake into something quite well especially if you focus on the pomegranate and the violet. Due to the fruity tones it also is quite lovely iced! If you want, I can brew some for you to try?”

“That would be perfect!” Hunk practically shouted while bouncing on the balls of his feet. Allura gave him a smile as she turned to get some hot water boiling. Keith meanwhile took a closer look at the tea. The smell of it was amazing and it was something he could easily work with. The tea would be perfect. The color alone was enticing enough with the bright magenta of the pomegranate and the vibrant purple of the violet. It was definitely going to be stored in a glass jar on the counter. The tea was too pretty to be hidden away.  
Allura turned around after a few minutes. “Since it’s still a white tea steep it for approximately two to five minutes. I personally for this tea prefer closer to five to allow for the pomegranate and violet to become more prominent.” 

When the tea was finished Allura poured three cups of tea and handed them to the boys. Keith took a look at the hot beverage and was quite happy to find a light pink color. Something that color would go over great with female customers and if made into an Arnold palmer type drink it would become a huge hit. Tasting it also turned out to be quite nice. Allura wasn’t joking when she said it was light and easy to drink. The tea had no bitterness and worked its way smoothly down Keith’s throat. 

Once Keith polished off his cup, he turned to his two friends to find them equally pleased! Hunk was already ranting to Allura while also listing off ways he could use this to make new desserts. Even Lance was smiling happily at the cup. Lance’s eye’s fluttered closed and Keith heard him quietly sigh. The sigh was relaxed though not an annoyed sound but gentle and soft as if he was remembering something dear to him. What Keith would do to know what Lance was thinking. 

“So I can assume this is the tea you want to go with?”

Keith shot Allura a friendly smile, regretfully tearing his eyes off of Lance who still appeared lost in thought. 

“You’ve really outdone yourselves with this one Allura. It will be perfect for our store. I also was hoping I could stock up on some mint, chamomile, and earl grey while I was here.”  
Allura beamed with pride and shot Keith another radiant smile as she happily agreed and started to prepare the order for the group.  
Once the order was ready Keith paid for the order with a card they had reserved for store purchases and thanked Allura. The other two boys also thanked her and she smiled in reply. 

“It was lovely meeting you two! Feel free to stop me and say hi if you see me around!”

The group of boys all waved and said their goodbyes to Allura before they moved on. Since they had accomplished their goal now there was nothing for them to really do other than walk around. Keith had some ingredients in mind to purchase but it wasn’t much of a priority as it was still a little too early to start selling lemonades and nothing else was out.  
Still, when Keith spotted a strawberry stand he gladly stopped and bought a few packs. He placed the purchase in the saddle on Kosmo and gave the dog a grateful pat. He really did make shopping a million times easier. The dog eagerly nudged him back and Keith showered him with attention. He was most definitely jealous that he got ignored at the tea stand and was more than happy to have the attention back on him. 

“Sorry boy” Keith whispered quietly to Kosmo as he kneeled down to better pet him. 

Out of the three of them Lance was the most excited to be walking around and his attitude was infectious. Lance, on their walk, had found a pastry stand and had happily dragged Hunk and Keith along to buy some sticky pecan buns. Soon Lance had both Hunk and Keith laughing and enjoying themselves as if they were just there to have fun and not for a work matter.  
As they kept walking Hunk eventually found a stand that was selling some interesting spices and herbs. During this time Keith and Lance got separated from him and much to Keith’s shock he realized that Lance was gripping his hand as he dragged Keith along. 

Keith could feel his face heating up and he was sure he was as red as a fire truck. Lance didn’t seem to notice though and god Keith hoped it stayed that way. The two of them kept holding hands as Lance dragged Keith to a stall with flowers covering every inch of its surface. Lance was giggling now and if that wasn’t the sweetest sound Keith had ever heard he didn’t know what was. 

He watched with a silent smile as Lance happily picked up some sunflowers. He turned to Keith, still holding his hand, as he smiled.

“Look how pretty they are! I’m so going to have to get some for my mother! She loves anything bright and happy. Plus, these are one of my favorites! What about you… Keith?”

Keith shook himself out of the trance he had fallen in to as he starred at Lance. “favorite? Um, I guess, forget-me-nots? The little blue ones. My mother. Every time, before she would leave for Japan again after her visits, she would buy me some and tell me not to forget about her and she wouldn’t forget about me either. I don’t know they are just kind of sentimental now.” Keith said this all relatively quietly, if he was being honest, they weren’t really his favorite for that reason exactly, they also just happened to be the closest shade of blue to Lance’s eyes. God that blue was something Keith didn’t think he could live without now. 

“That’s actually really sweet.” Lance’s smile got even softer and he felt a light squeeze of his hand. Keith had almost forgot that the two were even holding hands. Key word almost.  
Keith could feel his face heating up even brighter and turned away from Lance quickly.

“Whatever”

That only earned him a strong laugh from Lance. The two continued to move through the maze of flowers set up. Lance continued to point out one’s he thought were pretty as Keith just silently followed behind with Kosmo in tow.

At that point both of them knew they were holding hands, but neither made a conscious effort to let go. Keith found it comforting and didn’t want to let go ever. He just really hoped Lance felt the same and he wasn’t reading too much into this. Which is totally something he would do. Lance probably held hands with Hunk too, and Pidge. That just seemed like the friendly thing Lance would do. 

Keith was so distracted by the surprisingly rough and large hand that encircled his that he found his mind in a battle against itself debating just exactly why Lance was holding his hand. Part of Keith’s overworking brain just wanted to ask, but there was no way he could ever do that. Heck that would probably cause Lance to drop his hand right there and then and Keith would know once again that he was truly the best at ruining moments and making things awkward. 

Eventually Keith managed to quiet his brain just enough to enjoy the feeling alone. If he was being honest, he didn’t get much contact with other people. The few and far hugs he shared with Shiro and his mother, but hand holding. That was a feeling Keith was altogether new too. And despite the conflicting feelings running through him, overall it didn’t matter, because the feeling of Lance’s hand surrounding his made him happy and that’s all that mattered. IT didn’t matter if Lance was doing it just to be nice, or to keep Keith following him, he didn’t even care if it was just a natural instinct for someone with siblings. Keith liked it. 

After the flowers Keith caught site of a vegetable stand where he ended up dragging lance to next. He was almost out of food at home and nothing tasted better than fresh vegetables. Lance also started shopping for stuff too as he started to tell Keith all of the different things he, or at least Hunk, was going to use them in. Keith couldn’t help but laugh at that. Looks like he just signed Hunk up for some work. 

Shopping with Lance was fun, and if Keith was being honest it felt as if they were on a date. The thought of that made him blush again and he couldn’t help but thing that he’s done nothing but blush this entire trip. 

He was thankful that Lance was keeping quiet about it instead of teasing him because there was no way that Lance hadn’t noticed how red his face was and so often. Heck, Keith didn’t think the blush went away since they started holding hands. Which thank god the weather was cool enough to keep his hands from sweating because Keith was pretty sure he would bury himself right there and then if his hands had started getting hot and sweaty on top of everything. 

Eventually, the two had finished their shopping and decided that they should probably find Hunk. It was starting to get late and the market wasn’t going to open forever. Lance also wanted to help his family pack up their stall. 

“Hunk and I can help as well if you would like. I would also like to thank your parents for supplying our café.”

“No, No, that totally fine, and we should be the one’s thanking you for buying it from us!” Lance was violently waving his one hand as if to distract Keith from the idea of meeting his family, which Keith did find a little sad, but it was all forgotten because instead of letting go of Keith’s hand lance only held it tighter. 

Keith was smiling now and happy to watch the tides turn as it was now Lance’s turn to blush excessively. His tan skin hid it well, but his ears were so clearly red Keith found it funny yet mortifying to know that he’s looked like that the entire time but to a much greater extreme. Nothing was hidden on his pale face.  
With a sly smile Keith asked Hunk for directions to Lance’s parent’s stall.

“Sure thing! I feel like I haven’t seen them for ages!”

Hunk happily started to weave his way through the crowd to a slightly less crowded spot. There Keith caught site of a simple stall advertising fresh milk and cheese. He could tell right away that the stall belonged to Lance’s family because the girl running the stand was practically identical to Lance.  
She must have seen them too because the girl quickly abandoned her job as she came sprinting to the small group. 

“Lance, Hunk! I didn’t think you would be stopping by! And just on time too! It’s just me and Marco today so clean up is going to be a pain. Marco is bringing the truck around now so you have to help now that you’re here!” 

Keith stood there awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck as Lance’s hand was yanked from his grip. It would be a lie to say that Keith didn’t miss the feeling of it. Still he was happy to see a more natural Lance, different from how he acted around him. The Lance in front of him was griping and complaining but still doing all the work, slowly piling boxes of left over product. Keith went to go help when a hand quickly stopped him. 

“oh no you don’t! You must be Keith! Lance talks about you alllllll the time. You’re our client and Lance’s friend, you just relax! I’m Rachel by the way, Lance’s twin.”

Keith stood a little stunned, unsure of how to react. He hadn’t even known Lance had a twin, he also hadn’t known that Lance talked about him. Just the thought of that had Keith’s face blooming impossibly brighter. He quickly moved his line of sight up to the sky but not before he glanced a bright and blushing Lance too.  
Keith was relatively quick to snap out of the embarrassment all considering. 

“Are you sure I can’t help? You guys are the whole reason our business can run. It only seems fair I help, especially because Lance is my friend. Hunk is helping.”

Keith shot Lance a smile who returned the softest smile Keith had ever seen in return. It wasn’t up to Lance though and Rachel made that known. She looked up from the ground where she had invited herself to introducing herself to Kosmo. 

“Nope” she said popping the P at the end.

“I won’t hear of it. Plus, once the truck comes around we’re all done.”

Keith noticed what she said was true. Lance and Hunk already had everything packed up and stacked in a way that would be easy to load into a truck.  
Keith sighed at that and shot Lance a glance. 

“Don’t try to fight it man, the women in my family always get what they want.”

“Your darn right we do!”

It wasn’t long before a blue truck pulled up right next to the boxes. Without a word Lance and Hunk loaded the boxes while Rachel guarded Keith. She was really determined to keep him from working. 

When the boxes were loaded a man leaned out of the window who also looked in extreme likeness to Lance. It must have been one of his brothers.  
The man didn’t say anything but he did give a quick nod at Keith as he ruffled Lance’s hair. “Thanks for the help little bro.”

Keith hadn’t notice as Rachel made her way to the truck and climbed in. “See you later Hunk! Lance! And nice meeting you Keith!”

As fast as the truck had pulled up, it was already gone and Keith was left standing there with Hunk and Lance in the middle of a bunch of half taken down tents. 

“Sorry about my family, they are on their own program.”

Lance was blushing again and rubbing the back of his head.

“That’s part of the reason I didn’t really want to stop by, it would have been better if my mother was here instead.”

Keith didn’t know what to make of that, but he wanted to let Lance known it was alright, better than alright. He was happy he got to meet some of Lance’s family. He was happy to see Lance acting different, he got to see another side of Lance today, and he had got to call him his friend. That alone meant something to Keith.

Gathering what little courage he could Keith quickly walked up to Lance and grabbed the hand that had been rubbing the back of his head. Gripping it tight Keith held Lance’s line of sight, staring directly into his beautiful eyes. 

“No, I’m glad I got to meet them! It made me happy to know more about you. I didn’t know you had a twin, or how similar you looked to your brother.” 

By the end of his impromptu speech Keith was practically whispering but he made sure to hold Lance’s gaze until he had spoken what he wanted, he wanted Lance to know he meant it and that he was in all honestly truly happy to get to know him better. He wanted Lance to know he wanted to know him, every little thing about him. 

The two stood there in silence for a while, staring at each other, each too afraid to move. That is until Hunk cleared his throat.

“Okay, so like time to go home?”

“yeah buddy.” Lance mumbled as he snapped out of the trance he was in and started to follow Hunk and Kosmo who were already heading back to the car.  
Keith was quick to follow he head aimed at the ground as he held a goofy smile on his face. 

Lance was still holding his hand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to start off by saying to whoever is reading this that I truly didn't mean to disappear for so long, but when I tell you junior year of college in a science major is not fun. I have been drowning in work and had to deal with a move in the middle there. I am going to keep with this story as it helps me keep sane, it just isn't going to have any semblance of order to when the chapters get published. I don't want to sacrifice quality or length just to post something and this is meant as a fic for myself as well. I find writing this soothing. (something I 100% need because organic chemistry labs can die)  
> Again I'm really sorry for the long break I took from this but things are starting to slow a little and I should be able to write more of this! Thank you for anyone who reads this I really appreciate it and just know I love feedback so any comments would be amazing!
> 
> (also shameless plug - my roommate and I started a booktok and out account is pennilesspaperbacks if any of you are interested in book content!)


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